Hand implements such as ice scrapers, and snow and garden shovels, roof shingle spades, and the like, exact a toll on the hands and arms of the user, the vibrational energy created by repeated impacts can cause muscular distress such as carpel tunnel, and the like. Applicant owns a similar system used on a conventional handle for alleviating impact that it markets on shovels in conjunction with U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,899 under the trademark Shock Shield™ handle. The problems can be exacerbated by an enlarged tool blade. While beneficial to reducing the times the tool needs to be used to impact the offending ice patch, the larger surface increases the actual force necessary and, therefore, the force transmitted into the hands and arms of the user.
A solution for such issues is provided by introducing a shock absorber/spring system in the path between the blade and the handle so as to reduce the amount of vibrational energy actually communicated to the hands and arms of the user, in essence, short circuiting the transmission path. The present invention provides an enlarged handle to facilitate the manipulation of the impact tool and to distribute the load between the user's two hands, effectively, halving the impact. This “sharing of the load”, in conjunction with the shock absorption effected by the spring, significantly lessens the negative impact on the musculature of the user. Lastly, the arcuate handle allows better alignment of the wrists and hands of the user enabling them to work in concert and have the impulse forces extend directly down (and the resultant impact forces, directly up) the arm bones rather than have the hands angled “off-line” causing greater stress on the wrist and elbow joints.
The present invention comprises a shock-reduction system for a hand-held impact tool for chipping ice, snow and the like, the hand-held impact tool including an extended blade for engaging the ice, snow, and the like, said shock reduction system comprising a) a C-shaped handle having a width adequate to accommodate two adult-sized hands; b) a shaft extending between the C-shaped handle and the extended blade defining a primary axis; c) a Y-shaped yoke connecting the handle to a shaft, the shaft extending between the yoke and the extended blade; d) a spring means positioned in a load path, the load path extending between the extended blade and the C-shaped handle, the spring means absorbing a significant portion of an impact force transmitted from the blade through the shaft into the handle through the Y-shaped yoke. The spring means comprises an elastomeric spring in each arm of the Y-shaped yoke. The handle has an arcuate configuration to permit better alignment between the user's wrists and hands, and provide a non-axial, inward force component serving to unify a user's two hands. The arcuate configuration of the handle has a radius of curvature between 5″ and 8″ and, more preferably about 6.5″.
Various other features, advantages, and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent after a reading of the following detailed description.